Pancakes take a while to make so I usually put them on the meal plan for weekend breakfasts or lunches. If you’re tired of plain pancakes, why not try Apple Pancakes as an alternative instead? This recipe is easy to make. Use your imagination when serving. Try adding fresh blueberries or raspberries or thinly sliced apple and sprinkle with cinnamon sugar. Yum!

Method:Begin by preparing your apples. (Remember to sprinkle a little lemon juice on the apples to keep them from turning brown after cutting or grating.) Cut one apple on a mandolin to make uniform thickness slices. These will be used with the pancake batter.

The other apple should be peeled and grated to add to the batter.

Now you’re ready to start on the batter itself. Melt the butter over medium heat being sure not to scorch it.

In a medium to large size bowl, beat two large eggs until frothy.

Add the flour to the beaten egg.

Then add the 1/3 cup of sugar. Reserve the rest of the sugar for actual cooking.

Next add the bicarb soda, salt, cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg.

Add the buttermilk, vanilla and melted butter to the mixture and then stir to incorporate everything.

Add the grated apple. Stir until just combined. The mixture will be thick.

Add 1/2 cup batter to the pan. Place two lightly sugared apple slices on top.

Cook the pancake until bubbles form (about 2 minutes). Flip the pancake with a spatula and cook until golden brown on each side for a total of about 4 minutes cooking time per pancake. You may need to spray the spatula with cooking spray between pancakes to ensure the pancake doesn’t stick to the spatula.

Place the cooked pancake on a plate. Garnish with apples slices other fruit and a sprig of mint, if desired.

Method:Toast the bread.Peel, slice and mash avocados.While the bread is toasting, mix up the mashed avocado with lime juice and a little salt and pepper.In a small skillet, warm the oil and then fry the eggs, until yolk is cooked to your preference.Assemble toasted bread with avocado spread, egg and salsa on top.

Method:Preheat the oven to 180 degrees Celsius.Pour melted butter into a well greased glass or ceramic 23x30cm baking dish. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and salt until well blended. Gradually whisk in milk. Pour egg mixture into the baking dish.Bake uncovered for 10 minutes, then stir, and bake an additional 10 to 15 minutes, or until eggs are set. Serve immediately.

Method:Mix nutmeg into icing sugar and set aside.Heat oil in a non-stick fry pan on medium-high heat.In a shallow dish, pour enough of the egg nog so the slices of bread are halfway submerged.Dip bread on both sides and place into hot oil. When bread has been toasted on each side and is golden brown, remove and sprinkle with icing sugar mixture and seasonal berries.

Method:Melt the butter over medium heat in a large frypan. Add the onion and capsicum; cook and stir until the onion is transparent, about 5minutes. Stir in the mushrooms and bacon, and cook 2 minutes. Remove the frypan from the hotplate and place the vegetable-bacon mixture in a bowl.Pour the eggs into the same frypan. Cook and stir gently just until the eggs are soft. Stir the vegetable-bacon mixture into the eggs. Season with salt and pepper. Cook the eggs until firm. Remove the frypan from the hotplate and stir in the tomato and cheese. Serve with buttered toast triangles.

Method:Combine mashed potato, cold meat, onion, cabbage, beaten egg and salt and pepper. Heat a non-stick frying pan. Add the oil and butter to the pan and allow the butter to melt. Drop tablespoonfuls of the potato mixture into the oil. Flatten slightly with a spatula. Fry until golden brown and crunchy, turn and continue to cook until both sides are golden and crunchy. Serve with tomato sauce.

Method:Preheat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Place cooked crumbled mince in a large mixing bowl. Fold in both cheeses. Place pie shell in a pie plate. Place the sausage mixture in the pie shell. Whisk eggs, milk, onion and capsicum in a separate bowl, making sure eggs are blended in well. Pour the egg mixture over mince mixture. Place the sliced tomato on top of the casserole. Bake one hour or until knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

*If you don't have Swiss cheese, and I often don't, use cheddar, mozzarella, or whatever cheese you have.

Method:In a shallow bowl, whisk egg and egg white until foamy. Whisk in milk, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Preheat oven to 100 degrees Celsius. Heat butter in a frypan over medium-low heat. Dip 4 slices of bread in the egg mixture, turning to coat thoroughly. Let excess drip back into bowl. Place coated bread slices in hot frypan. Cook, turning, until both sides are nicely browned, about 2 minutes each side. Transfer to a warm plate and keep warm in oven. Repeat with remaining bread and egg mixture. To serve, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, if desired. Serve with Pancake Syrup.

Method:Preheat the oven to 180°C. Spread the softened butter over the bases and around the sides of four individual ramekins to coat them. Season the insides of the dishes well with salt and freshly ground black pepper.Crack an egg into each dish, then spoon 2 tablespoons of the cream over the top of each. Place on a baking tray and bake for 8–10 minutes, or until the whites are set but the yolks are still quite soft.Garnish as desired and serve at once with slices of crusty bread or hot, buttered toast.

Method:Preheat oven to 200°C. Use the extra melted butter to grease two 20cm sponge tins.Beat eggs and milk together.Place flour in a medium mixing bowl and make a well in the centre. Add half the milk mixture and lightly beat. Add remaining milk mixture and mix in gently. Beat in the melted butter.Pour half the batter into each prepared tin.Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes, then reduce heat to 175°C and bake a further 5 minutes. Pancakes will be puffed and golden.Cut each pancake into quarters and serve immediately with pancake syrup or sugar and lemon wedges.Serves 4.

Method:Combine the orange and lemon juice and whisk until well combined. Stir in the sugar and continue stirring until the sugar has completely dissolved. Place the pineapple, oranges, grapes, pears, banana and apples into a large salad bowl. Add the cherries and marshmallows and toss the ingredients together well. Pour the juice mixture over the fruit and stir to cover the fruit completely.

Method:Break eggs into a wide, shallow bowl or pie plate; beat lightly with a fork. Stir in salt and milk. Over medium-low heat, heat a frypan coated with a thin layer of butter or margarine. Place the bread slices, one at a time, into the egg mixture, letting slices soak up mixture for a few seconds, then carefully turn to coat the other side. Soak/coat only as many slices as you will be cooking at one time. Place bread slices in hot frypan cooking slowly until bottom is golden brown. Turn and brown the other side. Serve French toast hot with butter and syrup.

Method:While preheating oven to 175 degrees Celsius, peel the potatoes and quarter. Place them in a large pot and fill with water to cover. Bring potatoes to a boil and continue boiling for 7 to 10 minutes (you want the potatoes to be soft but not so soft that you can’t slice them).

While the potatoes are boiling, put 4 tablespoons butter in a baking dish and melt in oven, then tip baking dish to make sure butter is distributed.

In a bowl, toss together the cheddar and gruyere cheese; set aside.

In a separate bowl, beat the crème fraiche and eggs together; set aside.

Once the potatoes are done, drain them and slice each piece in half.

Remove the baking dish from the oven and dump half the potatoes into the pan and layer as evenly as possible on the bottom of the dish. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and set aside.

Take the remaining 1 tablespoon butter and place it in the same pot you boiled the potatoes in. Add the onion and sauté until tender, approximately 3 minutes.

While the onion is being sautéed, chop the ham. Mix the ham and onion together in the pot with the heat turned off, and then layer half the mixture over the potatoes in the baking dish.

Scatter half the cheese mixture evenly over the ham-onion mixture, then put the remaining half ham-onion mixture on top, then use the remaining cheese mixture and sprinkle on top, then pour the egg mixture over all evenly.

Method:Melt the butter in a large, shallow heavy-based frying pan (preferably non-stick). Add the onion and cook for 10 minutes, stirring frequently, until soft.Tip the onion into a large bowl and mix with the potato and cabbage. Season. With lightly floured hands, shape the mixture into four rough cakes, each about 2 cm thick.Wipe the pan clean with paper towels, then add the oil and heat. Fry the cakes over a moderate heat for about 15 minutes, turning once, until golden and crisp.About 5 minutes before the end of cooking, prepare the poached eggs. Pour 4 cm of boiling water into a large, wide frying pan. Add the vinegar and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat to a gentle simmer. Crack an egg into a cup, then gently tip it into the water. Repeat with the remaining eggs.Cook the eggs very gently for 1 minute, then gently spoon a little boiling water over the centre of each egg to cook the yolks. Poach for a further 2 minutes, then lift them out with a draining spoon, allowing the water to drain. Lay an egg on each bubble and squeak cake, then serve.

MOO GranolaMost granola recipes call for old-fashioned rolled oats but it doesn’t have to stop there. Granola is so extremely versatile you can add any kind of grain, nut, seed and dried fruit you want. As long as you keep the basic quantities the same, you can make a wide variety of granolas to suit your family.

Method:Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius. Mix all dry ingredients together. Mix oil, honey & water together and stir well into dry ingredients. Spread onto a baking tray and slow toast for about 1 and 1/2 hours, stirring carefully every 20 minutes. Allow to cool and store in an airtight container. This mixture seems to last me about 3 times as long as anything store bought because it is so filling and you only need a small amount to keep you going until lunch time. You could add your own favourite seeds/nuts or even a small amount of dried fruit if you like it a bit sweeter. 'Contributed by Julie Carne

My daughter has recently been required to go lactose free due to a food intolerance. It is great that you can purchase lactose free dairy now but the yoghurt and cheese is really expensive.

To make lactose free yoghurt, I have been using the lactose free UHT milk mixed with 1/4 of the lactose free yoghurt (small tub) in a yoghurt maker the same way I would use it for normal yoghurt. If you do not wish to buy the yoghurt to start with, you could use a antibiotic powder as a starter for the yoghurt.

The four pack of yoghurt can retail for close to $6 for four small tubs. You can make one litre for about $1.50-2.00.

I have flavoured with blueberries but my daughter is happy just to have it as is.Contributed by Kathryn Clarke

A clean 1 litre jar with a screw top lidA wide mouthed thermos that will hold the jar2 cups milk powder (either full cream or skim, it's up to you)2 tablespoons natural yoghurt (this is the starter)Cool water (tap water is fine as long as it's not really cold).

Method:Half fill the jar with cool water, add the milk powder and the 2 tablespoons natural yoghurt. Put the lid on and shake well to combine. Make sure there are no lumps of milk powder left. Fill the jar to the top with more water, seal and shake well.

Place the jar in the thermos. Pour boiling water around the jar until it reaches approximately 2/3 of the way up the sides. Put the lid on the thermos, sealing it tight.

Set aside for 8â€”12 hours, depending on how thick you like your yoghurt. Once it has reached the consistency you like, place the jar of yoghurt in the fridge to cool.

Save 2 tablespoons of the unflavoured yoghurt to act as a starter for your next batch.

Sweeten to taste with sugar or honey and add fruit, syrups, muesli etc

*Mango: Stir through 2 tablespoons mashed mango and sweeten to taste. Top with sliced mango.

You can use this yoghurt, unflavoured, as a substitute for sour cream on baked potatoes, nachos, enchiladas, tacos and even in dips, saving even more money and cutting one more item off the grocery list.

Method:Pre-heat oven to 175 degrees Celsius. Mix brown sugar, oil, and honey in a small saucepan. Bring to a low boil. Remove from heat. Stir in cinnamon and vanilla extract. Pour over oats in a large bowl. Stir until well coated. Spread oats in a lamington tray. Bake for 10 minutes. Take out and stir. Return to oven. Turn oven off. Leave in oven until completely cool. Store in an air-tight container.

Method:Split the muffins and toast on both sides. Beat the eggs and water. Pour into a heated, non-stick fry pan. Cook 2 minutes, turn and cook through, about another minute. Cut the egg into 8 equal pieces. Place an egg and a slice of cheese on half a muffin. Put under grill for 1 minute, to warm through and melt the cheese. Top with the other half a muffin.

Method:Beat the flour, water, milk powder and egg yolks together. In a separate bowl beat the egg whites until stiff. Using a metal spoon fold the egg whites into the batter. Heat fry pan or griddle until hot. Using a ½ cup measure pour batter onto lightly buttered pan or griddle. Cook until bubbles form and start to pop on the top of each pancake then turn. Cook for further minute. Place a clean tea towel on a cake rack and sit pancakes on tea towel until ready to eat. This recipe makes about 8 medium pancakes.

Doing the prep work for these delicious and healthy muffins the night before saves the measuring and mess in the morning. Just combine wet and dry ingredients, pour and bake and breakfast is done! Piping hot, fresh muffins in around 25 minutes.

Method:Combine dry ingredients in large mixing bowl. Cover and set aside until morning. Mix wet ingredients and store, covered, in the fridge until the morning. At breakfast time, pre-heat oven to 200 degrees Celsius. Combine the wet and the dry ingredients, and stir just until blended. Pour mixture into greased 6 cup muffin tin, sprinkle a few oats over the top and bake for about 20 minutes.

Do you love syrup with your pancakes? It is so easy and economical to make and you know that being homemade it is better than any more expensive commercial syrup. Here is a fantastic recipe for Cheapskate Pancake Syrup.

Ingredients:2c brown sugar2c hot water1 tsp vanilla extract

Method:Place the sugar and water in a medium size saucepan. Bring to the boil over a medium heat, stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Boil for 5 minutes. Take off the heat and carefully stir in the vanilla extract (it may spatter when you pour it in). Let cool and store in a glass bottle.

Method: Whisk the eggs and cream in a large bowl until fluffy, season with salt and pepper if you wish. Heat a non-stick pan and add the butter. Allow the butter to melt and the pour the egg mixture into the pan. Let the eggs cook, without stirring, until they begin to set around the edges. As they begin to set, carefully stir from the outside edge of the pan to the centre.Do not allow the mixture to boil or it will separate and become watery. Slowly stir the eggs until almost completely set. Turn the heat off and allow the eggs to continue to set. Serve with hot, buttered toast.

Method:While preheating oven to 175 degrees Celsius, grease a baking dish with cooking spray.In a medium bowl, whisk the egg whites, eggs, and milk together. Add the rosemary, pepper and Dijon mustard and mix together.In a large bowl, add the bread, spinach, red capsicum and ham. Add the egg mixture to this and toss to evenly coat. Pour into greased baking dish and push down to compact. Cover with tin foil.Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Uncover and sprinkle with cheese and continue to bake until it’s puffed and golden brown on top, approximately 15 to 20 more minutes.Cool for 15 minutes before serving.

Method:Heat a non-stick frying pan. Place all ingredients into a large bowl and whisk until just combined.Lightly grease the frying pan with butter. Cook pancakes in batches, using a large serving spoon to pour the batter into the pan. Turn when edges are starting to dry and bubbles have formed on the top. Cook for 1 minute or until underside is golden. This recipe makes 6 large pancakes.

Method:Mix 1 tbsp strawberry jam into the cream cheese. Spread each of the 4 tortillas with the strawberry cream cheese mixture to the edges of the tortilla. Spread 1 tbsp of strawberry jam down the middle of each of the tortillas. Fold the end of the tortilla in about 5cm in. Grab the front edge of the tortilla and roll until completely closed. Cut into 5cm inch bites.

These little treats can be wrapped and chilled, ready to go into lunchboxes or used as an afternoon tea treat after school.

Method:Place the 2 cups of canola oil into a deep fryer or deep sided, heavy fry pan and allow to heat to 170 degrees. Pour the milk into a bowl with the slightly beaten egg and whisk to combine. Add the apples to the mixture and gently stir to incorporate. In a separate mixing bowl toss together the flour, 1 tbsp sugar, the baking powder, 1/4 tsp cinnamon and the salt. Add the flour mixture to the egg and milk and blend until all the dry ingredients are just moistened. Drop tablepoonfuls of the batter into the hot oil and fry 4 minutes, turning occasionally for even browning. Remove the fritters when they are a golden brown with a slotted spoon and place on a paper towel to drain. Continue deep frying in this manner, being sure to allow the oil to return to the correct temperature before adding a new batch.

Place the remaining sugar and 3/4 tsp of the cinnamon into a ziplock bag. Add the fritters a couple at time and shake to cover well with the cinnamon sugar. Be sure to seal the bag before shaking. Place the fritters on plates.

Place the syrup into a microwave safe bowl. Stir in the remaining cinnamon until well combined. Microwave on high for 30 seconds or until the syrup is warmed.Pour the syrup over the fritters just before serving.

Method:Preheat the oven to 180°C. Coat a small non-stick frying pan and two shallow gratin dishes (about 10cm in diameter) with cooking spray.Rinse the spinach under warm water in a colander until it is thawed, then squeeze dry. Sprinkle with a pinch of pepper. Divide the spinach mixture between the gratin dishes and shape into a "nest" in each dish, forming indentations with your fingers.Crack 1 egg into a separate small dish, then slide it into a spinach nest, and season with a pinch of pepper. Repeat. Bake until the eggs are just set, about 15 minutes. Cracking the egg into a separate cup and then sliding it in helps to centre the yolk.To make the cheese sauce, put ? cup (80 ml) milk and the flour in a small jar with a tight-fitting lid and shake until well blended (or use a Tupperware Quick Shake or similar shaker). Pour the mixture into a small saucepan, then add the remaining milk. Whisk constantly over a medium-high heat just until bubbles form around the edge, about 3 minutes. Add the tasty cheese and Parmesan cheese and whisk for a further 4 minutes or until the cheese melts and the sauce is smooth.For each serving, slide a spinach nest onto the bottom half of an English muffin. Spoon over half of the cheese sauce. Arrange the top half of the muffin on the side of the plate.

Method:Preheat oven to 150 degrees Celsius, and spray a 9x13 inch casserole dish with cooking spray.In a large mixing bowl, add all ingredients and mix together. Once mixed, pour into the greased baking dish and bake for 1 hour.Remove and let stand for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.Will serve 3 to 4.